


Your Warmth

by Pengoop



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Fluff, M/M, Minor Angst, Mutual Pining, One Shot, Sharing a Bed, Storms, Swearing, Winter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-07
Updated: 2015-02-07
Packaged: 2018-03-11 00:05:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,090
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3308222
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pengoop/pseuds/Pengoop
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eren’s been stuck waiting for his bus in the middle of a snowstorm for over an hour now.<br/>He just wants to go home.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Your Warmth

**Author's Note:**

  * For [doujinbag](https://archiveofourown.org/users/doujinbag/gifts).



> Inspired by Leave Before the Lights Come On, and the Canadian winter weather.
> 
> I haven't edited this, so please tell me if there's any errors.
> 
> I also kind of wrote this for doujinbag because they're a bae and we kind of share a lot of ideas w/ each other so um.
> 
> Kudos, bookmarks, subscriptions, and comments are always greatly appreciated.  
> Find me at pengoop.tumblr.com  
> Unedited and unbeta read.

Eren shivered, desperately trying to magically lengthen his scarf to cover more of his body. If he moved it up, his neck was cold. If he moved it down, his face would freeze. He was afraid to look up, knowing his bare skin would be attacked by the falling snow.The wind was always conveniently blowing towards whatever direction he was facing. The snow probably rose another few centimeters since he came outside, nearly reaching the top of his boots. His beanie, jacket, and bag were completely covered in white. It’s been over an hour, and his bus hadn’t come. His phone was literally frozen. Eren had no way to check the news, call a friend, or at the very least - put on some music to pass the time.

The streets were nearly empty. Eren was out late that night, doing some much-needed grocery shopping. If he had produce on him, it would’ve all gone bad in the freezing cold temperatures. Luckily for him, all he had were shitty frozen and canned goods and instant ramen packets. He wished he could’ve had somewhere to take shelter under while he waited. The city thought it was an amazing idea to remove all the bus shelters in the winter. Eren would’ve gotten a coffee or something to warm him up a bit, but he couldn’t risk missing the bus if it finally came while he was inside. That happened to him multiple times. He screamed every time it happened, no matter how many weird looks he got for it. The frustration was too much to handle.

Eren would’ve kicked the stupid bus pole down if he actually wanted to move. The kinetic energy probably would’ve warmed him up a bit, but the insane amounts of wind discouraged him. The weather was absolutely horrible, because Eren Jaeger - The living space heater - was cold. And that was a major understatement. His body wasn’t even warming up from his anger at the unreliable public transit system like it usually did. His ears, cheeks, and nose were completely red and numb. He wished somebody would just come up and hug him until he could go home. All he wanted was to go home and wrap himself up in blankets. Being able to wrap himself up with somebody else would’ve been nice, but the only person he was willing to do that with would never love him back.

So he waits for another 15 minutes, only moving to shake snow off of his body or fix his hat and scarf. His consciousness begins to slip. He feels like he’s going to fall asleep in the fluffy white snow. His senses aren’t sharp enough anymore. The only thing he can feels is how cold and lonely he is. All sounds are drowned out by the loud whistling of the wind blowing through the streets. His eyes flutter shut, the snowflakes on his long, dark eyelashes slowly melting onto his pink cheeks. Eren nearly passes out before he’s woken by the familiar sound of a rattling bus. His head shoots up in the direction of the noise and a grin spreads out on his face. He can just make out the familiar blue lights, those _beautiful_ blue lights that were practically singing to him.

His expression fell almost immediately, just when he was about to bounce his way onto the vehicle. “Not in Service” the lights read. The deceitful, hellish blue lights. Eren screamed. He never felt so betrayed. Not even when Jean convinced him that his beautiful, amazing, completely out-of-his-league crush wanted him to meet up with coffee. How did he even believe that? It was so sudden and unexpected. Why would the senior want to go on a date with him? They didn’t talk much outside of school. The older student would help him with his classes and share the occasional joke, but they hadn’t shared much otherwise. The only personal moments they shared were awkward and overly emotional, the first one being when there were some idiots throwing around homophobic slurs. Eren was, needless to say, extremely uncomfortable, having to resist the urge to get up and give them a good beatdown. Levi, like some saint, had appeared just before he lost himself, handling the situation much better than he would’ve. The second time, it was a mistake. Eren was in charge of writing an Athlete of the Month biography about the other man, much to his dismay. It wasn’t a hard to write about Levi at all, it was so easy even. There were so many praises that Eren could shower him with, but that was the problem. It was too easy. He didn’t want to look like some stalker for already knowing everything about him without having to ask. Many heart-shaped doodles appeared on his page while he laid out an outline for his article. After hours of revisions, Eren had submitted the writing and avoided Levi for the next week. When he was finally seen, the reaction was nothing like he expected. Levi actually _thanked_ him, of all things. Eren didn’t need to brace himself. So when Kirschstein tricked him into thinking Levi asked him out, he gladly got to the café 15 minutes early and ended up waiting for him the whole day. He’d actually been waiting for him for the past three years. Okay, maybe that was still the most betrayed he ever felt.

Eren hugged himself. He was completely smitten with the man. He’d do anything to have his arms around him instead of his own. It was almost painful sometimes, how much he loved him. He didn’t even know him enough for it to be possible. Love was meant to be reserved for your somebody you were already a relationship with, but here he was. Hopelessly in love with a man who only really mentored him in school. It hurt so much, how much he wanted to be able to call him his. He’d never be able to though. Levi was astounding in every aspect. He was an honours student, incredible athlete, and member of the student body. Even with his unconventional sense of humour and awkward sarcasm, he was popular with girls and boys alike. At the very least, he was beautiful. Dark black hair, perfect pale skin and sharp features. Eren got lost in his eyes whenever they had to study together. He didn’t have time to even think about being with a low life like him; an average junior student who played as a forward for the soccer team. Eren couldn’t let himself imagine Levi kissing him and saying ‘good morning’ or climbing into bed with him at night. But sometimes it was those thoughts that brought a smile to his face before reality hit him and tears pricked at the corners of his eyes.

A loud honk startled Eren out of his ridiculous self pity. He stumbled back a few steps before looking up at who honked so loudly. And there he was, looking as perfect as ever, with his soft black hair and stormy eyes. Eren had to stop himself from staring. “What the fuck are you doing out here, kid?”

“I-I’m waiting - was waiting? For m-my bus.” He managed to stutter.

Levi raised an eyebrow. “At this hour, in the worst fucking storm in years?”

“Y-yeah?”

“Get in the car, you’re not standing outside here.”

“No! I mean, it’s fine,thank you. I’ve been waiting here for awhile already. Should be here any minute now...”

“This isn’t a question, get in here.”

“It’s fine, honestly! I don’t want to to trouble you.”

“Look, do I _really_ seem like the type of person who’d offer if it was trouble? Get in here, _now_.”

“B-But,”

“I’m not fucking leaving without you. Now get your ass in the car so I can close this window, shitty brat.”

Eren backed down, reluctantly opening the passenger door and letting himself in. A small amount of snow accumulated inside the car already, even in the short time the window was open. Levi rolled his eyes, pressing the gas pedal nearly immediately. “What were you doing anyway?” His deep voice sounds.

“What?”

“Do I seriously need to explain everything to you? What were doing outside in this weather?”

“I had to get groceries,” Eren said, motioning to his bags.

Levi turned his head momentarily to look at what the other bought. “That’s not food.”

“But it’s ju-”

“That’s not real food. You should be eating better.”

“I don’t have the time or money for that! I’m in college Levi!”

Levi cut Eren short. “You think I don’t know that? If you forgot, I’m still in my last year. I’ve been through everything you’re going through already. Take it from me, you seriously need to be eating properly. This processed bullshit isn’t what your body needs to function.”

“Well I’m not you. I can’t cook to save my life.”

“Then learn. You can’t survive off of this.”

Eren didn’t respond, opting to stare out the window instead. He couldn’t see anything but blurs of light from the streetlights and signs of buildings they passed by. Levi didn’t say anything else during the ride. The wind was growing even stronger, more snow falling down onto the ground. The car was forced to slow down, Levi not willing to risk getting in an accident. He figured Eren had to put up with enough bull shit that day. The last thing they needed was to get stuck on the side of the road.

They both reached up to turn up the heating, their fingers touching briefly. Eren quickly removed his hand, clasping it with his other as he stared down at his lap. “Sorry,” he murmured. “It’s kind of cold, that’s all. Could you turn up the heat?”

“Hm,” Levi began. “What did you think I was doing? Though it does surprise me that you of all people is cold. I thought you had a personal fireplace inside you.”

Eren pouted. “It’s freezing outside.”

Levi’s lips quirked up at the corners. Eren wasn’t looking at him to see it. “Turn on the radio, would you? Should already be on the news station.”

He pushes a button and a fuzzy sound becomes audible. Neither of them can make out many words, the white noise overpowering the voice nearly the entire time. Eren may’ve given up on decoding the message, but Levi was still listening intently. He pieced together the snippets of information before announcing “There’s a severe weather warning. Took them long enough. We should be getting inside as soon possible. The power could go out any minute now, so you should eat and get yourself ready before it does. You able to take care of yourself kid?”

“Of course I can! I’m an adult.” Eren huffed, folding his arms.

“An adult who can’t cook for himself.” Levi quipped.

“Leave me alone about that.”

Levi didn’t respond that time. He just drove, squinting at the road signs to make sure he was going in the right direction. The storm was only getting worse and the car was only getting colder. They shouldn’t have been too far away from their university campus now, just a few more minutes away. Just a little longer outside, and then they could finally rest in their own homes and go on with their lives.

Eren was thoroughly confused when Levi pulled up at an apartment instead of the campus he lived on. It’s not like he didn’t know where he lived, because he did. This wasn’t the first awkward drive that they were in together, probably not the last either. Levi would go to his building to study with him every now and then or he’d drop him off after a track practice. Why didn’t he bring him back this time? Did he get lost? A pit stop, perhaps? But what person stopped at an apartment? Even with the slower driving, they should’ve been able to make it by now. Well, Eren wouldn’t find out by just staring out the window.

“This isn’t my building.” Eren stated simply.

“Observant, aren’t we?”

“Why aren’t we at my building?”

“My apartment is closer and I don’t trust you to stay safe in this weather.”

“Can you stop treating me like a child? Thank you, really, but I don’t need all this. I’ll be fine.”

“I’m not giving you an option. Unless you want to walk to campus from here, you’re stuck with me.”

Eren groaned in defeat. “I really owe you one.”

Levi rolled his eyes and got out of his car, assuming Eren would follow. He shoved his hands in his pockets, quickly striding over to the side door. He hurried to pull his wallet out of his back pocket and swipe his key card on the door. A beep sounded and the door was unlocked. Levi pushed the door open and sighed, holding the door for Eren as he waited for him to get inside. The way he fumbled with his groceries and walked through the snow was adorable, almost like a child who was still getting the hang of living. Levi smiled. Eren still didn’t see him.

“Took you long enough.” Levi said, closing the door behind him.

“S-sorry,” the younger boy stammered. “The snow was deep and my groceries were falling out of the bag.”

Levi didn’t tell Eren how cute he thought he was.

  
* * * * *

Eren’s never been in Levi’s apartment before. He takes the time to marvel at how clean and sleek it was. The room wasn’t huge, but the way the furniture was laid out and his things were organized made it feel fairly spacious. It almost looked like a model home, but didn’t feel like one at all. The monochromatic colour scheme effectively made everything look put together and overall nice. The decor suited the man, mostly consisting of geometric designs and simple accents. It was all very Levi. Eren wouldn’t mind living there with him. He could get used to it.

“You can hang up your coat in the closet to your left and leave your boots on the the mat to your right.” Levi said, pulling off his own boots. He picks up the bags Eren left on the ground and brings them to the kitchen. He still doesn’t consider any of the things he bought to be real food, but what was done was done and Eren would have to eat it eventually. Levi grabs a few things that he’d need to prepare dinner and sets it down on the counter. “I hope you like pasta, that’s all I really have the ingredients for.”

“Oh my god, Levi!” Eren cries, slamming his hands down on the counter.

“What?”

“Don’t cook for me! I have food I can eat.”

Levi glares at him. “Do I seriously need to tell you about how that’s not real food again?”

“But Levi,” Eren whines.

“Shut up.”

Eren pouts and walks over to the couch in Levi’s living room. He doesn’t sit down - he doesn’t know if he can. What if he’s too dirty? He shouldn’t get all his natural Eren-grime all over the other’s furniture. That would be inconsiderate. So he stands in front of the seat instead, staring down at his feet. Shit, his socks aren’t the cleanest either. He shouldn’t stand on the carpet either. Eren shuffles off to the side and checks his phone. It’s still insanely cold; none of the buttons will budge. He doesn’t bother with trying to turn it on. Everybody’s useless texts will have to wait. All he’ll have to do is pretend that he was safe inside his dorm room the whole day and wasn’t caught up in the storm.

“What’re you doing?” Levi questions, placing his knife down.

“Standing?” Eren says, blinking.

“Why don’t you sit down? Watch the TV, use up all my WiFi, I don’t care.”

“Oh I, um, didn’t want to ruin your couch.”

Levi slams his face down onto his hands and walks over to where Eren is standing. He grabs his wrist, dragging him to the couch and pushing him down onto it. Eren’s face flushes. This is really happening, just like he’s in a bad porn. This is when Levi’s supposed to straddle him and kiss him senseless and literally take his breath away. He closes one eye and moves his head away ever so slightly. The warmth of the other’s body against his doesn’t come. Of course it wouldn’t. He gets a remote thrown onto his lap instead. Eren sighs and flips through the channels. Nothing interesting is on, so he settles on listening to the news. Might as well get caught up with what’s going on in the world while he has the time.

Levi’s in the kitchen, mixing the sauce in a pot on the stove. He picks up the pot of spaghetti and moves it to the side, turning off the burner it was on. He’s mindlessly putting the supper together, not really paying attention to the task at hand. He doesn’t really need to; he’s been making the same pasta for years now. It was easy and cheap enough to make, so it was go-to meal. He tries to not stare at the 20 year old sitting on his couch right now, but it’s a little hard when he’s hugging his knees up against his chest like a young child. Levi sighs and places two clean plates down the island. He puts some of the pasta on each one, giving Eren a little more sauce than he gave himself. He seemed like the type who’d want it completely drenched. “Dinner’s ready.” Levi announces, placing a pepper mill down in front of him.

Eren is practically skipping over to him, his socks causing him to slide around on Levi’s floors. The older man covers his smile with his hand, looking away. He nudges Eren’s plate towards him. “You can sit on that barstool. I’m fine with standing.”

Eren opens his mouth to protest but closes it with a frown when he meets Levi’s stare. He picks up his fork and twirls the pasta onto it. His eyes widen as soon as he takes a bite of it. “It tastes amazing!” he exclaims with a full mouth, a small amount of the pasta sauce spilling onto his chin.

“Stop that, it’s gross. And um, thanks I guess.” Levi says, right eye twitching slightly. As disgusting as it the act was, he couldn’t help but think Eren’s boyish expression was impossibly cute. He wanted to lean over the counter and kiss all the food off of his lips.

“S-sorry!” Eren says after swallowing this time. “It was really good and heh, I guess I had to say something right away.” The boy grins at him.

“Yeah,” Levi mutters, taking his own bite to distract himself from the other. The food wasn’t anything special to him at all. He’s eaten it countless times to the point that he barely noticed its taste anymore. He didn’t see the compliment coming at all, and he’d be lying if he said that it didn’t make him a bit flustered. It wasn’t as easy as it looked for him to conceal his emotions, but he couldn’t possibly show Eren how much he affected him. The boy was young and attractive - he wouldn’t want to waste his time on a guy like Levi. Hell, he didn’t even know if he was even into guys at all.

Levi suddenly felt bad for keeping Eren with him. He should’ve trusted him when he said that he could manage on his own instead of forcing him to come into his apartment. He probably seemed like a creep for dragging him around. But could he really kick him out now? That’d probably be pretty horrible of him too. He went far enough; there was no real way out. He’d just have to go through with it and not make things any worse.

“All that are already indoors are advised _not_ to leave for your own safety.” A woman’s voice sounds from the television. Just Levi’s luck. He sighs, setting his fork down on his plate.

“I guess you’re stuck here now.” Levi says with a shrug.

“Shit, I hope this all clears up before it gets too late tonight. Mikasa is gonna kill me.” Eren groans, fisting his hands in his hair.

“Sorry. I’ll guess we’ll have to see.” Levi looks away, trying to hide the fact that he was at least a little disappointed in how badly Eren sounded like he wanted to get out of his house. His frown tugs down a little lower, barely enough to notice. You probably wouldn’t unless you were looking for it.

“Would I um, have to uh...Y’know, stay here if it didn’t?” Eren asks, blushing ever so slightly.

“I suppose you would.” Levi says simply. The less he talked about it, the less he’d have to think about it.

“Uh, would I have to sleep on the couch then? I wouldn’t mind. But I mean, I’m sure I could leave safely too. Shouldn’t be too bad from here to my dorm.”

“No.” Levi responds too quickly.

“I-I just don’t want to trouble you.”

“Eren.”

“What?”

“What the ever living fuck did I say about you troubling me?”

“That you wouldn’t have offered if it was…”

“That’s right. Now to answer your question, no. You’re taking the bed.”

“Levi!” Eren slams his fists against the counter.

“What is it Eren? And _please_ , for the love of god, stop hitting my counter.”

“S-sorry, but Levi, seriously! This is your home, and you’ve done enough for me. I can sleep on the couch, honest!”

“I’m smaller, I can fit better on the couch.”

Eren let out a high-pitched whine, hitting his head against the granite.

“Would you stop that, please? You’re losing your already low supply of brain cells.”

“I hate you.” Eren says in a soft voice.

Levi knew he didn’t mean it. Levi still felt hurt. He picks up their empty plates and brings them to the sink. The dishes were washed in silence. The news continues playing in the background, drowned out by the sound of the running water. The two of them don’t bother to share words with each other.

As Levi finishes drying the last of their dishes, Eren pushes himself out of the barstool. “Um, I’m gonna go and wash up now. So, night? I guess.”

“Second door on the left. Bedroom is the last door.”

Eren nods and shuffles away.

 

* * * * *

Levi finds himself joining Eren in his own bedroom, book in his hand. He takes a seat beside the bed and tries to make some progress in his reading, shifting positions and massaging his temples whenever he loses his focus. But Levi knows the real reason he’s so distracted. It’s the boy in his bed, already fast asleep. His hair is messier than usual, splayed across the clean white pillow. Levi has to resist pushing the hair out of his face; he looks so peaceful and calm like this. The energy that the boy usually possessed seemed to have left his body for the time being, finally allowing him to rest. His chest slowly rose and fell with each breath. Levi loved all the little things about him, like the way he would somehow choke in his sleep or how his limbs would twitch just slightly every now and then. He was beautiful. Is beautiful. Will always be beautiful.

Levi carefully reached a hand over to move Eren’s hair away from his eyes. He couldn’t see the boy’s stunning blue-green eyes, but he still didn’t want to obscure the view of his face. Levi kisses his forehead softly and pulls the blanket over him a little higher before returning to his book. He’s satisfied himself for long enough, able to focus on reading for a little longer before guilt came back to greet him again. He let temptation get the better of him and allowed himself to act like a complete creep. It was undeniably bizarre for him to do something like that to Eren when he was asleep. Levi didn’t want to be taking advantage of the other boy. He wouldn’t forgive himself for doing something like that.

He had to go back to reading to get his mind off of Eren, though it wasn’t all that effective of a method. Levi was just tiring himself out instead, nearly falling asleep multiple times. Time goes by surprisingly slowly when you’re constantly going from being unconscious back to consciousness. It was getting harder and harder to keep himself awake, there was no point, really. Levi succumbed to his need for rest.

 

* * * * *

Eren wakes up with a welcoming warmth surrounding him. He doesn't open his eyes yet, wanting to stay under the covers a little longer. He eventually has to get up, but something's stopping him from moving. Oh no, oh _fucking_ no, Eren hoped he wasn’t having sleep paralysis. The last time he experienced it, he saw these weird, deformed giants at his window. He was 7 and he was terrified. The dreams came back fairly frequently. He was still afraid; that was one thing that didn’t change. Eren is tempted to close his eyes again, but he knew that would make that worse. He tugs away again, this time realizing that he wasn’t completely immobile. Something was just in his way. He reluctantly pulls the blanket off him, regretting it soon after.

Levi’s limbs were tangled with his.

Eren turns his head around nervously. Levi’s still asleep, looking more peaceful and serene than he’s ever seen him before. His mouth gapes open slightly at the sight, one that he knew he’d never forget. He looks back down at Levi’s arms around his waist, and then at his face again. Was he still dreaming? There was no way Levi would sleep with him - Hell, he was probably repulsed by the idea of sharing a bed with somebody. Too many germs or some bull shit like that.

Eren sighs, carefully removing Levi’s limbs from his body. For somebody asleep, he had an amazing grip. After finally getting out of the bed without waking the other man. Eren makes his way to the kitchen to make something to eat. He feels bad for not asking Levi for permission, but he wants to surprise him as well. It’d ruin it all if he had to wake him up. He was a little worried that something would go wrong and he’d make a mess, but hey, cooking some breakfast was the least he could do after everything from last night.

 

* * * * *

Levi is cold when he wakes up. He didn’t expect to find himself in his own room, remembering how he offered to sleep on the couch the night before. What happened to that? Was all of last night some sort of extended hallucination? No, it couldn’t have been. He remembers everything too vividly for it to have been some sort of story his brain fabricated. That would’ve been a lot easier for him though; he wouldn’t have to deal with the feeling of disappointment from Eren being gone already. He must’ve scared him away by sleeping with him. That was the only explanation.Did the storm even let up yet? Was Eren willing to put up with the the cold if it meant getting away from him? Levi sighs.

A loud crash interrupts Levi’s self-pity. What the fuck was going on? Something probably fell down in his kitchen. He groans, forcing himself out of bed. He really needed another shower, but whatever was going outside his room needed to be attended to first. He rubs at his eyes and opens the door, the hinges creaking loudly. Almost immediately, the smell of bacon and eggs floods his senses. That was odd. The last time this happened, it was Hanji helping him get over a bad hangover. They could be insane for about 95% of the time, but hell was Levi thankful for them at times like those. Did Hanji let themslf in again this morning?

Levi didn’t even consider the possibility that Eren would’ve stayed. But there he was, wiping the counter with a blue washcloth (he ignored the fact that he was using the wrong one). “Shit! Levi, I’m not ready yet!”

“Morning to you too.” Levi was trying pretty hard to keep his voice sounding bored, but it was difficult when his heart is beating rapidly in his chest. He feels like he’s going to burst.

Eren pouts. “I was going to serve you breakfast in bed…”

Levi’s walking towards him, smiling. Eren can see it this time. Eren’s smiling too(especially when Levi is ruffling up his hair). The older of them chuckles, taking a plate for himself. He opens a drawer, passing a knife and fork to Eren. The pair still don’t say anything to each other, but it’s not an awkward silence like the last night. Something’s changed since then, and they both know it. They don’t need to say anything. They already understand.

“Thanks,” Levi says after finishing the meal. He gets on his tippy toes, pulling Eren’s head down just enough for him to kiss his cheek. He pushes Eren’s hair out of his face, and it’s not hard to see the blush dusting his cheeks or the way that his widened at the contact. Levi’s wrapping his arms around the taller man's shoulders, head resting against his chest. He breathes in the scent of everything Eren, which was much too complicated to describe in words. It calmed him, made him feel more at home than he ever had.

Eren had a lot to take in. Even though he woke up with Levi’s arms around him - just like he always wanted - it wasn’t the same as having him do it when he was awake. The man was asleep the first time; it could’ve all been a mistake. But _this_ , this was real. It was everything he dreamed it would be and more. Levi’s strong arms wrapped across his body, lean figure leaning against him, their warmth being shared with each other. His brain never could’ve gotten all the details down. Eren was stunned. It took all of his courage to put his arms around him too, instead of just dangling at his sides. The shorter man tensed up for just a second, but quickly relaxed, pressing himself even closer to him.

Things were okay.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed this.


End file.
